Outdoor electrical box cord and method of making an outdoor electrical box cord

ABSTRACT

A power cord includes at least one electrically insulated wire, including a wire conductor disposed within an insulated sleeve, and a connection terminal. The connection terminal includes a crimp portion crimped and soldered to the wire conductor at at least one end of the at least one insulated wire. The power cord further includes a heat shrink sleeve covering the crimp portion of the connection terminal and a portion of the insulated sleeve of the at least one electrically insulated wire, and an overmold molded around at least a portion of the heat shrink sleeve.

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 62/695,428 filed Jul. 9, 2018, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

Known outdoor electrical boxes for providing electrical connectionpoints for outdoor power access include wall-mounted receptacles andpost-mounted receptacles that may be mounted on vertical surfaces, andelectrical boxes mounted in the ground or other horizontal outdoorsurface for providing electrical connection points distant from existingwalls. For example, in an athletic field, a large public flower garden,or a public park, it may be desirable to provide electrical receptaclesfor intermittent electrical connections, such as short-term lighting,power washers, and electric maintenance equipment, e.g., hedge trimmersand chain saws. The electrical connection points must be accessible sothat a user can plug and unplug devices as required.

Moisture is a significant problem for outdoor electrical boxes becauseit may lead to electrical box failure and/or may result in a seriouselectrocution risk. Moisture is particularly problematic for electricalboxes installed in the ground because water may collect and pooltherein. Therefore, when electrical power fed into an outdoor electricalbox from a power source, for example through a power line buriedunderground, the power line is led into a NEMA Type 6 enclosure, whichis designed to be impenetrable to water during occasional submersions inwater. NEMA stands for National Electrical Manufacturer's Association.From the NEMA Type 6 enclosure, power may then be routed to electricalconnection points, such as receptacles, within the electrical box, wherethe electrical box is typically designed in such a way to keep waterfrom reaching the faces of the electrical receptacles and/or theelectrical connection points.

However, even though the NEMA Type 6 enclosure is designed to beimpenetrable to water, if the enclosure is left submerged for anextended period of time, air may be able to slowly escape the enclosurethrough the cord or cords that exit the enclosure and connect to theelectrical connection points, thereby allowing the NEMA Type 6 enclosureto fill with water.

BRIEF SUMMARY

According to the present disclosure, a power cord may comprise at leastone electrically insulated wire, including a wire conductor disposedwithin an insulated sleeve, and a connection terminal. The connectionterminal includes a crimp portion crimped and soldered to the wireconductor at at least one end of the at least one insulated wire. Thepower cord further comprises a heat shrink sleeve covering the crimpportion of the connection terminal and a portion of the insulated sleeveof the at least one electrically insulated wire, and an overmold moldedaround at least a portion of the heat shrink sleeve.

According to the present disclosure, a method for forming a power cordincluding at least one electrically insulated wire comprising a wireconductor disposed within an insulated sleeve is disclosed. The methodincludes crimping a connection terminal on the wire conductor at one endof the at least one electrically insulated wire and soldering thecrimped portion of the connection terminal. The method further comprisesheat shrinking a heat shrink sleeve onto the crimped portion and atleast a portion of the insulated sleeve of the at least one electricallyinsulated wire, and molding an overmold tube around at least a portionof the heat shrink sleeve.

According to the present disclosure, a power cord for an outdoorelectrical box may comprise three electrically insulated wires. Eachelectrically insulated wire may comprise a wire conductor disposedwithin an insulated sleeve and a connection terminal including a crimpportion crimped and soldered to the wire conductor at a first end of thepower cord. Each electrically insulated wire may further comprise a heatshrink sleeve covering the crimp portion and a portion of the insulatedsleeve, and an overmold tube molded around at least a portion of theheat shrink sleeve.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the presentdisclosure will become apparent in light of the detailed description ofembodiments thereof, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an electrical cord according to thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective cut-away view of an electrical box includingthe electrical cord of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 3A-31 show a method for forming the electrical cord of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Before the various embodiments are described in further detail, it is tobe understood that the invention is not limited to the particularembodiments described. It is also to be understood that the terminologyused is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, andis not intended to limit the scope of the claims of the presentapplication.

In the drawings, although certain descriptions may refer only to certainfigures and reference numerals, it should be understood that suchdescriptions might be equally applicable to like reference numerals inother figures. Additionally, although various features have been shownin different figures for simplicity, it should be readily apparent toone of skill in the art that the various features may be combinedwithout departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 shows an electrical cord 10 according to the present disclosure.As seen in FIG. 2, the electrical cord 10 may be used in an electricalbox 12 for connecting a NEMA Type 6 enclosure 14, which is designed tobe impenetrable to water during occasional submersions in water, to areceptacle 16 or other similar electrical connection point. Theelectrical box 12 may be an outdoor electrical box for installationoutdoors in the ground such as that described in U.S. application Ser.No. 15/592,337, which is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety. Thus, the electrical box 12 may allow for easy access to theelectrical receptacle 16 while protecting the electrical receptacle 16from water by keeping water away from the electrical connections andreceptacle 16, even while the electrical box 12 is not completelywaterproof and may, itself, fill with water.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the electrical cord 10 includes at least oneelectrically insulated wire 18 comprising a wire conductor 20 disposedwithin an insulated sleeve 22. For example, the electrical cord 10 mayinclude three electrically insulated wires 18 configured to providestandard positive, negative, and ground wiring connections. At at leasta first end 24 of the electrical cord 10 connecting to the NEMA Type 6enclosure 14, each electrically insulated wire 18 includes a forkterminal 26 attached thereto according to the method shown in FIGS.3A-31 to form an airtight and watertight connection.

Referring to FIG. 3A, the fork terminal 26 is first connected to theelectrically insulated wire 18 by crimping a crimp portion 28 of thefork terminal 26 to conductor 30 of the insulated wire 18. Referring toFIGS. 3B and 3C, heat is then applied to the fork terminal 26 using asoldering iron 32 and solder 34 is applied to top 36 and cavity 38 ofthe fork terminal 26, as seen in FIGS. 3B and 3C respectively, until thecavity 38 is full, as seen in FIG. 3D. The soldered fork terminal 26shown in FIG. 3D may then be cleaned to remove any contaminants thatcould compromise the additional seals formed in the steps shown in FIGS.3E-31.

Referring to FIG. 3E, a heat shrink sleeve 40 is then positioned overthe crimp portion 28 of the fork terminal 26, with the heat shrinksleeve extending from the crimp portion 28 to also cover a portion ofthe insulated sleeve 22 of the electrically insulated wire 18. Once theheat shrink sleeve 40 is in position, heat is applied to the sleeve 40to shrink the sleeve 40 onto the crimp portion 28 and the insulatedsleeve 22. Immediately after, pressure may be applied to the sleeve 40to set the heat shrink, for example, by pressing a contact element alongthe length of the sleeve 40. The pressure may be applied at multiplelocations around the circumference of the sleeve 40, for example, at 90°intervals, by successively rotating and pressing the electricallyinsulated wire 18 and fork terminal 26 with the sleeve 40 disposedthereon. FIG. 3F shows the insulated wire 18 and fork terminal 26 withthe heat shrink sleeve 40 after the heat shrink sleeve 40 has been fullyapplied thereto.

Referring to FIGS. 3G and 3H, the fork terminal 26 and the end of theinsulated wire 18 with the heat shrink sleeve 40 applied thereto is thenpositioned within a mold 42, such as an injection mold or the like.Liquid nylon is then injected into the mold and allowed to harden toform a nylon overmold 44 around the fork terminal, insulated wire 18,and heat shrink sleeve 40, to provide a finished wire terminal 46 asshown in FIG. 31. As seen, the overmold 44 does not cover need to coverthe entire heat shrink sleeve 40 and, in embodiments, the heat shrinksleeve 40 may extend outward from the overmold 44 at one or both ends ofthe overmold 44.

The overmold 44 provides increased rigidity to the connection betweenthe electrically insulated wire 18 and the fork terminal 26, therebymaking a stronger connection. Additionally, without the overmold 44, theheat shrink sleeve 40 at the connection between the electricallyinsulated wire 18 and the fork terminal 26 could crack or break whenflexing. This finished wire terminal 46, which includes a crimped,soldered, heat shrink, and overmolded connection, prevents water fromseeping through the electrically insulated wire 18 into the enclosure14, shown in FIG. 2, and/or prevents air from escaping the enclosure 14through the electrically insulated wire 18, both of which can result inflooding of the interior of enclosure 14 if the enclosure 14 issubmerged when the electrical box 12 is filled or partially filled withwater.

As shown in FIG. 2, each electrically insulated wire 18 of the cord 10includes the finished wire terminal 46 according to the presentdisclosure at at least the first end 24 of the cord 10 to prevent anyflooding of the interior of enclosure 14 during submersion. A second end48 of the electrical cord 10 may include standard wire connections asshown in FIG. 1 or, alternatively, may have the same airtight andwatertight finished wire terminals 46 of the present disclosuredescribed in connection with the first end 24.

As seen in FIG. 2, the enclosure 14 may include an opening 50 connectedto a conduit 52, such as a steel or poly-vinyl-chloride conduit, throughwhich power wires from a power mains are routed into the enclosure 14for connection to the finished wire terminals 46 of the cord 10according to any conventional manner. For example, the enclosure 14 mayhouse a ground fault circuit interrupter connecting the power wires fromthe power mains to the electrically insulated wires 18 of the cord 10 ina conventional manner so that electrical power may be disconnected fromthe receptacle 16 by the ground fault circuit interrupter in a hazardoussituation is detected. Because enclosure 14 is water impenetrable andbecause cord 10 prevents water from seeping through the electricallyinsulated wires 18 into the enclosure 14 and prevents air from escapingthe enclosure 14 through the electrically insulated wire 18, theelectrical connection between the power wires from the power mains andthe electrically insulated wires 18 of the cord 10 will not be exposedto water even when the electrical box 12 is filled with water and theenclosure 14 is submerged, thus preventing that electrical connectionfrom presenting an electrocution risk.

Although the electrical cord 10 according to the present disclosure hasbeen described in connection with an outdoor electrical box forinstallation in the ground for exemplary purposes, the electrical cord10 may be suitable for any other similar application where preventingleakage is desirable.

As will be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the pertinent art,numerous changes and modifications may be made to the above-describedembodiments of the present disclosure without departing from the spiritof the invention as defined in the appended claims. Accordingly, theparticular embodiments described in this specification are to be takenas merely illustrative and not limiting.

What is claimed is:
 1. A power cord comprising: at least oneelectrically insulated wire comprising a wire conductor disposed withinan insulated sleeve, the wire conductor extending outward from theinsulated sleeve at at least one end of the insulated wire; a connectionterminal, the connection terminal including a crimp portion and aconnector portion, the crimp portion crimped and soldered to the wireconductor at the at least one end of the at least one insulated wire; aheat shrink sleeve covering the crimp portion of the connection terminaland a portion of the insulated sleeve of the at least one electricallyinsulated wire; and an overmold molded around at least a portion of theheat shrink sleeve; wherein the connector portion of the connectionterminal is provided as an exposed electrical terminal extending outwardfrom the overmold, the connector portion being configured to connect toa corresponding connector to electrically couple the power cord to thecorresponding connector.
 2. The power cord according to claim 1, whereinthe at least one electrically insulated wire comprises threeelectrically insulated wires.
 3. The power cord according to claim 1,wherein the connector portion of the connection terminal includes a forkterminal.
 4. The power cord according to claim 1, wherein the heatshrink sleeve extends outward past both ends of the overmold in alongitudinal direction of the at least one electrically insulated wire.5. The power cord according to claim 1, wherein the overmold is nylon.6. The power cord according to claim 1, wherein the wire conductorextends outward from the insulated sleeve at a second end of theinsulated wire; wherein a second connection terminal including a secondcrimp portion is crimped and soldered to the wire conductor at thesecond end of the at least one insulated wire; wherein a second heatshrink sleeve covers the second crimp portion of the second connectionterminal and a second portion of the insulated sleeve of the at leastone electrically insulated wire; and wherein a second overmold is moldedaround at least a portion of the second heat shrink sleeve.
 7. A powercord for an outdoor electrical box, the power cord comprising: threeelectrically insulated wires, each electrically insulated wirecomprising: a wire conductor disposed within an insulated sleeve; aconnection terminal including a crimp portion and a connector portion,the crimp portion crimped and soldered to the wire conductor at a firstend of the power cord; a heat shrink sleeve covering the crimp portionof the connection terminal and a portion of the insulated sleeve of theelectrically insulated wire; and an overmold tube molded around at leasta portion of the heat shrink sleeve; wherein the connector portion ofthe connection terminal is provided as an exposed electrical terminalextending outward from the overmold tube, the connector portion beingconfigured to connect to a corresponding connector to electricallycouple the power cord to the corresponding connector.
 8. The power cordaccording to claim 7, wherein the connector portion of the connectionterminal of each electrically insulated wire includes a fork terminal.9. The power cord according to claim 7, wherein the heat shrink sleeveof each electrically insulated wire extends outward past both ends ofthe overmold tube in a longitudinal direction of the electricallyinsulated wire.
 10. The power cord according to claim 7, wherein eachovermold tube is nylon.
 11. The power cord according to claim 7, whereinat a second end of the power cord, each electrically insulated wirecomprises: a second connection terminal including a second crimp portioncrimped and soldered to the wire conductor at the second end of thepower cord; a second heat shrink sleeve covering the second crimpportion of the second connection terminal and a second portion of theinsulated sleeve of the electrically insulated wire; and a secondovermold tube molded around at least a portion of the second heat shrinksleeve.
 12. The power cord according to claim 11, wherein each secondconnection terminal of each electrically insulated wire includes a forkterminal.
 13. The power cord according to claim 11, wherein each secondheat shrink sleeve of each electrically insulated wire extends outwardpast both ends of the second overmold tube in the longitudinal directionof the electrically insulated wire.